How to save a life
by Neldoreth
Summary: Around Batman Begins: Bruce Wayne, lost son of Gotham, saves a broken soul... but does she really want to be saved? - My first story in english, Bruce Wayne-Batman/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Batman and everything around him belongs to DC, I just own my OCs

**A/N:** So this is my first story in english and due to my wonderful beta Pepper I think it worked out very well! The first chapter is a bit short, but there will be longer ones, promised ;)!The story is completed, but I'm still translating it into english, so there will be updates from time to time.

The events move along Batman Begins, but I changed some things here and there... I refer to my artistic freedom :D!

Enjoy!

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**How to save a life**

Chapter 1:

Like a shade, the dark shape fought its enemies by itself. None remained spared and those, which defied its strength briefly, decided very soon to escape or fell finally due to its strong impacts.

Over the noises of the fight, his ears caught something different and he turned his masked head from one side to the other, in order to locate the higher pitched voice, which stood out so much over the other voices.

He deflected a senseless attack from a large, bulky man and threw him to the ground with a hard kick of his boot. The masked shape leapt onto the fire escape and surveyed the alley, in which the fight had broken out. At the end of the alley he saw three more guys, who circled themselves around a smaller person, who resisted using their hands and feet.

He looked down, where two men had just gotten up onto their feet to escape the threatening shade. He lifted his cape and propelled himself from the fire escape, and floated over the alley hitting one of them with his legs stretched forward. The guy fell to the ground swearing, while the other two let up on their victim and faced the stranger.

He fought with the three enemies with ease and looked around. The alley was swept as empty. From a distance he could still hear the fleeing men, but otherwise the streets were quiet.

A young woman lowered herself to the ground, pressed her fists in front of her face and breathed heavily. He knelt down to her level and grabbed her arm, with a curse she twitched and pressed more firmly against the wall.

"Miss?"

Hectically she shook her head and the dark avenger saw that her whole body was trembling. Under her messy dark hair two fear-fulfilled green eyes looked at him, blood ran slowly over her face. She was clothed in oversized brown trousers and a green cardigan that looked too thin for the cold weather. Her shredded clothes showed how hard she fought.

"You are safe now. Are you alright?'

He grabbed her arm more firmly and pressed it carefully to the side. He discovered that she had a deep wound on her head, which was the source of the blood. He briefly thought about taking her to the hospital, but as he regarded her more exactly he noticed that her clothes had not only suffered from the fight. He noticed that her heavy, leather boots were missing shoelaces and furthermore she looked very haggard and wrecked.

It was very likely that she could not pay for treatment, and she was already at the border of unconsciousness.

He lowered its voice, "You can trust me. "

He ignored her look of distrust and pulled her up onto her feet. The young woman groaned and held onto her left hand. She was much smaller than him, but the masked one lowered himself down to her, put his arm around her shoulders and led her to his vehicle. Each step obviously caused her pain and the woman sighed heavily, when she fell into the passenger seat.

"Who are you?" She asked weakly.

He started the engine and peered at the girl, she looked exhausted and her eyes had already drifted closed.

"It doesn't matter. Fasten your seatbelt."

She obeyed feebly and Batman started the engine.

"Alfred!"

The Butler was already up and was coming down the lift, before he began to make his way quickly to the Tumbler.

Bruce Wayne lifted the unconscious girl carefully from the seat and lowered her down onto the closest table. Alfred immediately began to examine the woman's wounds.

"Master Wayne, are you sure it was a good idea bringing her into the cave?" The older man asked puzzled at the fact that he would potentially compromise himself like this.

Bruce took the cowl from his face and ran his fingers through his dark hair.

"I am. She was unconscious the entire way."

He slipped out of the suit and pulled a shirt and trousers from one of the cabinets.

"Can you deal with her? I think she also broke her hand and I cannot because I have a business meeting—and I'm already late." Bruce asked moving silently around the cave, while Alfred had already began to clean the wounds.

"What am I to do when she wakes up?" Alfred asked simply.

"Take her home, if she is better. She's been through a lot but I think she will be okay."

Alfred nodded, "Falcone's men again?"

"I have a feeling it is getting worse, something big is happening and I have to find out what." Bruce tied his tie and adjusted his suit, before moving to the woman's side and observed her face. He had realized quickly that he could not save everyone, but he still wished he could.

"Master Bruce?"

Bruce slowly looked up and noticed Alfred's questioning glance, "Do you know the young lady?"

He shook his head, "No."

Alfred gently ran a cloth over her face and among the filth and blood gave way to pale, but immaculate skin.

"Like the face of Gotham City." Bruce murmured quietly to himself. Though she looked very gaunt, she was very pretty and Bruce guessed that she was probably in her middle twenties.

"Pardon?" Alfred asked.

Bruce waved it off, "Nothing." He looked up at the older man once more, "Thank you and I will see you later."

He left the cave with fast steps and rode the elevator up into the world as Bruce Wayne.

It was already late at night as Bruce parked his car and entered Wayne Manor. He loosened his tie and let himself fall into his armchair sighing. The business partners of Wayne Enterprises were annoying people, who were a real pain in the neck. They talked business the entire meeting, over the need to renegotiate an already existing contract. He clearly needed some vacation, but when he lifted his legs, the stinging pain in his knee reminded him of the fact that he could not afford vacation because those who roamed Gotham's Underworld do not take vacations.

Suddenly the incident of earlier that evening rushing back to his mind and he was reminded the face of the young woman, whom he had brought here. He decided to visit Alfred and ask about it.

"Alfred?" Bruce called as he moved quickly by the lower dwellings and finally reached the kitchen, from which he heard loud rattle.

„Alfred? "

He spied through the door and saw the Butler, who was tidying the already immaculate kitchen.

"Master Bruce. I did not hear you come."

Alfred turned around and folded his arms across his chest.

"How is our guest? Did you bring her home already?"

Bruce reached for a remainder of ham, which appeared to be left over from Alfred's dinner, before popping it into his mouth.

Alfred coughed slightly and hesitated, "She disappeared from the cave, on her own."

Bruce froze, "Alone?"

"Well, she was still unconscious, so I came upstairs to get something and when I came down again she was gone."

"How did she get out of the cave?"

Alfred shrugged his shoulders.

"I searched for her for quite a while, after all she was injured and I thought, she could not have come far but she was nowhere to be found."

Bruce nodded thoughtfully. "The elevator was at the top of the shaft and the exit of the cave leads far enough away from the property."

Bruce knew that, she could not make a connection between Batman and Bruce Wayne, but something else concerned him, "I hope she doesn't run into Falcone's men again."

"I think I should go to bed Alfred," Bruce stated with a yawn, he had already went out into the night earlier this evening and he was exhausted from the dinner meeting.

"I will clean things up down here." The older man turned away from his charge.

"Good night, Alfred." Bruce moved back toward the elevator, still haunted by the pale broken face of the unknown woman**.**

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

The short pain in her bandaged wrist evaporated as fast as it had come and her muscles relaxed. Anna sighed and sank against the cold wall and then she wrapped herself with her healthy arm and wiped the remaining tears from her face.  
She closed her eyes and abandoned herself to the reassuring effect of the Ketamine-mixture that pumped through her veins.

Her headache passed and her strained senses switched off; slowly the drug suppressed the painful memories of the past night.

Richard didn't get it.

After she had escaped from the cave of the stranger, she went back to search for her brother. Like her, he had fallen into the hands of Falcone's thugs, but no one had come to assist him. She had found him at the exact spot, where they had left him. The blood pooled where he had collapsed—dead.  
For what seemed like an eternity, she sat by his side and called his name, shook and begged him to wake up. But no dying words escaped his lips—no reaction to her pleading. Finally she had broken down exhausted beside the dead frame of her brother and had fallen asleep.

Policemen had woken her and scared her away, she barely managed to escape with Richard's jacket and his dose, then she came upon the place she called her home. The gravel covered spot under the large bridge was a popular place for homeless people and junkies like herself. Only few were here so early in the morning, but Anna was not interested in seeing anyone.  
Nothing else mattered to her but to escape the stinging pain in her heart.

If the masked one would not have emerged, she probably would have died at the side of her brother. She was still conflicted about whether she should be grateful that he had saved and sustained her, or whether it would not have been better, if he had just left her behind.

After she came around, the memory of the masked shape had only been a blur and she had feared that she had been kidnapped and taken to one of Falcone's hiding places. Only after she had found a way out of the cave, her memory had returned slowly.

At the moment she felt better, her thoughts didn't weigh so heavily on her soul and the stitched wound on her head was nothing more than a weak throbbing. She pulled her brother's jacket tighter around her thin body and let her weak head sink down onto her chest.

No more pain, no more fear. Silence. Peace. Sleep.

* * *

As Anna opened her eyes the sunset dazzled her. Her head hammered once more and as she rose from her uncomfortable position on the cold ground, pain shot through her bones. She blinked and her environment was clear and distinct again.

Anna sighed and wanted to get up on her feet, when she noticed a man was her side, huddled at her legs. She looked at him with indifference and pulled her legs out from underneath him and rose. She yanked the hood over her head and made her way toward the city.

She needed money, she thought as she walked.

The days flew past. Anna made her way through the city and begged or tried otherwise to get money or even just something to eat. The only thing that distinguished these days from each other was the isolation. The deep emptiness inside her, that made her do things,she had never done before.

Anna needed the drugs to numb the pain of Richard's death; they replaced the missing meals and torturous feelings of hunger, thirst, and loss.

She had even considered the idea of using her body to get the drugs she needed so badly. Some men had told her, she would be worth a decent amount of money. She also knew she could even persuade a Dealer to take her body as payment and in addition there was always the possibility of getting a hot shower.

One month had passed since Richard's death and Anna's encounter with the now notorious bat, soon after her encounter with the vigilante she had learned his identity—the Batman.

* * *

The winter approached and snow started to fall softly on the ground. Anna had procured some blankets and crouched in the area under the bridge. A tramp, who had taken seat beside her, lightly touched her on the shoulder.

Anna turned to him trembling like a leaf, even the drugs could not shut out the freezing cold.

"What?" She asked her teeth chattering.

The old man pulled out a cup and tilted it toward Anna, she took in the contents of the cup and observed a steaming liquid in it. Gratefully she took it and gulped down the hot beverage. She had burned her tongue, but the drugs suppressed the stinging ache a bit. She returned the cup to the man and gave him a small smile and he just nodded and poured out some more of the liquid from a battered can.

Anna could not say what she had drunken, though it left a bitter taste on her tongue and warmed her stomach immediately. She let her head fall back to the wall and closed her eyes.

Not much later a strange feeling woke her from a shallow sleep, and Anna opened her eyes but closed them instantly. Her whole world turned around her, her stomach revolted and Anna rose swaying. Perhaps this was a reaction to her haggard body or an accidental overdose she thought, as she supported herself against the wall and stumbled out from under the bridge. Anna lifted her head up in the freezing air and tried to breathe deeply.

The feeling of dizziness did not leave and slowly nausea ascended. Anna leaned over the shrubs at the river bank and choked, but her stomach was empty. She just spit out a little liquid. Suddenly the beverage, the old man had given her, came to her mind.

She then became suspicious that there was alcohol in whatever she had ingested and it seemed she unknowingly mixed the drugs with alcohol. A deadly mixture if too much of either is taken. Tears of fear and pain came to her eyes and exhausted, Anna fell to her knees.

A thick blanket of snow had begun cover the ground, but she did not notice the cold and snow slowly soaking through her clothes. Everything blurred before her eyes and she tried to pull herself up, but there was nothing she could hold on to.

Half unconsciousness and trembling she fell into the snow. Her senses fade and the last thing that went through her mind was Richard's smiling face and his hand stretched out through the darkness.

* * *

Bruce turned up the collar of his jacket and tucked his head trying to block out as much of the cold as possible. Within hours and incessant snow began to fall coating the city in white,but even so, Bruce had to get out of the house. As was with the rest of the city, he had finally taken a few days of vacation and the criminals seemed to be deterred due to the weather.

Bruce became bored alone at home though, with only Alfred as companion. There was no denying that Alfred was great company, but the Englishman was more like a caring father to him, a friend, but not one he would want to have a drink with. Also his usual female companions had not been satisfying him at the moment.

Bruce had thought about the girl that he had saved weeks ago. He had been concerned about her sudden disappearance at first, but since he hadn't seen her afterwards, the concern had been gradually dispersed by other things that had demanded his attention. The young woman had intrigued him a strange way, she had been very pretty despite her neglected exterior. If she did in fact live on the streets, she had not been doing so for very long by the looks of it. If she was still on the streets, he hoped that she had found a hideout in this weather.

He buried his hands deeper into the pockets of his coat, and made his way across the large bridge on the outer edge of the city and looked around and admired the white landscape. Out here there were very few people, and when he did see anyone, they didn't think he was Bruce Wayne. It was rare that the city made such a clean and peaceful impression, no matter which persona he was in.

Below him just out from under the embankment Bruce noticed a strange dark spot in the snow. From a distance it looked like an animal, lying there in the snow. When he bent over the railing to get a closer look, he recognized that it was in fact person, who lay motionless on the ground. His instinct urged him, to check and see if everything was alright and if the person was even still alive. It wasn't uncommon for the homeless to drift off in the snow and never awaken.

He arrived at the end of the bridge, then descended the lateral steps and approached the shape quickly but carefully. A bad feeling rose within him, when he recognized the long dark hair, which was fanned over the lifeless body. Bruce knelt down on his knees and grabbed the familiar form by the shoulder and briefly he held his breath as he saw his suspicions confirmed. In front of him in the snow was the young woman, still breathing, but very pale with blue hued lips.

Bruce didn't hesitate and lifted the girl into his arms. She was lighter than he remembered, Bruce thought as he hurried in the direction of his car, hoping that there was something that could be done to help the mysterious, broken woman and thankful for the fact that the streets were vacant.

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When Anna awoke several hours later she felt so weak that she could hardly open her heavy eyelids. It took all of her strength to take in her surroundings as she was lying in a darkened room, being swallowed up by heavy blankets and an enormous bed. Her whole body felt hot and she felt terrible.

Anna groaned as a sudden bright light dazed her and she draped an arm over her eyes. She heard steps as they approached and inch by inch slid her arm off of her face. What she saw was a man in a trim black shirt looking down at her and for a short moment his warm brown eyes seemed familiar to Anna. He smiled at her softly and his broad shoulders occupied her whole sight. She watched his slender face with his dark hair combed off of his high forehead and decided that he was not familiar to her.

He reached out his hand and placed it gently on her forehead.

"Your fever has gone down. How do you feel?" He asked.

Anna squeezed her eyes shut and tried to concentrate on his deep, agreeable voice, her head was in a fog and she began to whisper to herself incoherently.

Finally, she said something intelligible but very simple, "Crappy."

The man's smile became broader, "It'll be ok, but I think you should rest a few days. That means to stay in bed and get something to eat. You look terrible."

His voice became faint and Anna could hardly understand what he was saying. She had felt him completely remove the arm from her face and the room darkened again, as she drifted into a deep and healing sleep.

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	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Okay, this one is longer than the others and I hope I'm not confusing you with the many changes of perspective!

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Chapter 3:

Alfred slowly climbed the steps to the bedrooms, tired after the long day he had had. There was not much for him to do since Bruce Wayne was back in his parental home and he had taken over watching the streets of Gotham City as Batman, other than support him in his cause and sometimes stay up until late at night, caring for him, after he came home from his ventures.

Alfred had intended to go to bed when he stopped by the room in which their guest was accommodated. For three days the mysterious young lady remained at Wayne Manor and Master Bruce had cared for her during his days off. Due to his assistance and the help of a discreet doctor, she barely escaped from death and Alfred wondered whether she was aware of whose protection she was under.

She had slept almost the entire time, hardly regained consciousness, so Alfred was surprised when he heard rustling noises in her room. Master Wayne just returned from his nightly escapades as Batman, so it couldn't be him.

Carefully he knocked, "Miss?"

He did not receive a reaction so he decided to open the door a gap and was surprised by what he saw. The young woman had dressed and wore her old, torn coat. She rummaged in the wardrobe for something and glanced around the room hectically, as if she was looking for something.

She stumbled, when she noticed the Butler, who had pushed the door completely open now and Alfred saw that she was trembling terribly. Her already gaunt face was deathly pale and her eyes were glazed. The illness, which had been caused by her long rest in the snow, was not over yet.

As she moved to the door with amazingly resolute steps Alfred blocked her way.

"Not so fast young lady. I cannot permit you going out in this condition."

She didn't seem to understand him or ignored him intentionally and tried to thrust past the Englishman. Her bones felt so fragile under his fingers as he reached for her shoulder and stopped her again.

"Where are you going? You should rest and get something to eat." he suggested her with his low, calm voice.

But the young woman shook her head and pushed Alfred away. "I must get away from here!"

The old man tried to stop her, but despite her condition she slipped herself out of his grip with an anxious glimpse and trembling lips. Then she uttered a tormented sound and coughed several times, as she stumbled down the large stairs.

Alfred ran behind her, but however his older body was not fast enough, the girl supported herself by the rail as ran down the steps. When she arrived downstairs, shetook a look over her shoulder, until she suddenly hit an obstacle and aspirated a frightened cry.

Bruce Wayne stood directly in front of her, grabbed her wrists gently and looked at her in surprise.

"What are you doing? I don't think it is wise for you to leave."

The woman resisted Bruce's firm grasp, but unlike the old Butler, she could not resist him.

* * *

"Please, let me go."

Anna's voice was broken and she closed her eyes, in order to get control over her again. She felt tears on her cheeks, but the man held her in a firm, almost unyielding grasp, without hurting her.

"Look at me." he whispered bending down to look at her at her level, Anna resisted with the last bit of strength but she didn't stand a chance.

"Look at me," His voice became demanding and Anna moaned desperately, as she opened her eyes and tried to focus on his face.

For far too long she hadn't gotten a hit. Her body had been too busy fighting her illness, so the symptoms of withdrawal hit her twice as hard then. The pain was now stronger than before and only one urging thought dominated her mind: 'You need it! Now!'

She had managed to get past the older Butler, with the thought of a hit and adrenaline keeping her going; however, she didn't have the ghost of a chance against the strong man who held her close now, this was in a sense hell.

When she looked into his face, she saw his lips moving, but she did not understand a word. His voice and the other noises around them mixed and the pressure in her head became too strong. She sobbed before her legs retreated and her hands began to tremble harder.

The man with the brown eyes sank to the ground with her and covered her hands with his when he yelled something to the Butler and then Anna's world grew hazy.

* * *

When Alfred brought the blanket and the glass of water with the analgesic, the young woman had collapsed against Bruce's chest. She did not seem to notice him any longer and quiet tears ran down her cheeks. Her whole body was shivering and her hands were cold as ice.  
The Butler wrapped the blanket around her and as Bruce lifted her into his arms the girl wrapped her thin arms around his neck. He carried her to the sofa directly beside the fire-place, hoping that the fire would warm her and handed her the glass. She cuddled herself onto the couch and Bruce sat himself on the armchair beside it.

Half an hour passed, before her breath finally calmed. Bruce had watched her the whole time, her eyes looking rigidly into the fire as she rubbed her clenched fingers together.

The trembling had not stopped yet, but Bruce asked her quietly, "Do you feel better?"

It was barely noticeable, but she shook her head. Fear evident in her features.

"You are sick and I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to help you, but I can't when you decide to run away in the middle of the night."

She didn't answer, so Bruce continued calmly.  
"If you want to get try and get better, you can stay here. If you want to die, then you can leave."

"And if I wish to die?" her voice was hoarse and hardly audible.  
Bruce frowned. Her eyes were slits and her facial features were no longer as strained as they were before.

"Why would you want to die?" She slipped back into silence and Bruce decided to proceed differently, "What's your name?" he asked.

"Anna." she replied this time.

"Okay, Anna. Is there someone who can help you out, so that you can get back onto your feet?"

She shook her head solemnly, "Not anymore."

Bruce had expected this and nodded, she was already beginning to nod off and Bruce did not want to wake her because she needed to rest.

He asked himself, how her life had been, before it had obviously slid out of her hands. Whether her current circumstances were her decision, like it was his once, to take this step out of her old life or if she had been forced by personal circumstances like many others in Gotham, he was not sure.

Bruce decided to spend the rest of the night in the armchair. To be sure that she did not attempt another escape he told Alfred to lock all the doors. He did not want to keep her against her will, but he will try his best to keep her safe here.

* * *

Anna felt amazingly calm, as she lifted her head sleepily from the couch cushions. She still sensed a dull feeling in her bones, but this time something else tormented her — hunger. She sat up careful and waited until the daze in her head ceased and when she looked up she discovered the man, who had taken her in, asleep in the armchair.

She watched him for a while. The first buttons of his white shirt were undone, which revealed his slightly tanned, muscular chest. His dark brown hair was neat, as were his great hands with the slender fingers that rested on the arm of the chair. His whole exterior looked very sleek and his clothes seemed expensive, but his head resting on his shoulder and the peaceful expression on his face made him appear very relaxed. She took him in and thought he looked rather attractive.

Then Anna shook her head, she definitely did not know the man personally, but he was very familiar as though she had seen him somewhere.

Batman had also protected her several weeks ago, but even him she wasn't sure on which side he was on. She had already known so many people in her life, who pretended to care about her, but in reality didn't, so she had given up confiding in anyone. Her brother had been the only one in the world, whom she had unconditionally trusted—but he was dead.

Quietly she raised and crept on weak legs through the enormous living room. Anna was astonished when she reached the entrance hall. When she had tried to get out earlier that night, she hadn't noticed in what kind of property she was. The owner had to be loaded.

Her stomach was growling and she began to search for the kitchen, which was no easy feat in such an enormous house with what seemed like thousands of doors. She didn't want to burst coincidentally into the room of the Butler, so she only looked into each open room from the outside.

Anna discovered a study and her curiosity triumphed briefly over the hunger. It was only fair if she informed herself a little bit about the man, who had taken her in.

Suddenly the thought came to her mind that enriched men always had a safe or a small hiding place, where they buried some money, for hard times of course. Anna laughed quietly and thought about her times which were hard on a consistent basis. It would not take long, until the symptoms of withdrawal would return. She would only borrow a little from it, Anna thought, it seemed, as if he would have enough and for her it would mean at least a few days without pain.  
Quietly she crept around the area, peered behind the pictures on the wall, slid her fingers over the back of the books in the high bookshelf and rummaged around in documents. On one of the many notes a name stroke her eye: Bruce Wayne, Wayne Enterprises.

Therefore she knew his face. Weeks ago it had been in all newspapers, the missing son of Gotham, the heir of the vast Wayne Empire. Behind such a name she would have expected a rather self-interested being, not one who took young women out of the gutter like wet cats.  
She put the paper back on its place and turned around a few times, deciding that there was nothing valuable for her to find.

She took another step toward the back wall and suddenly ran into a stool. She succeeded to break her fall backwards against the piano, which caused a hell of a ruckus because she had hit the keys.

Anna winced, pressed her wrists on the ears and blinked in bad expectation—a reflex she had become accustomed to since earliest childhood. After a while she opened an eye testing and realized that everything was as quiet as it was before. She took her hands down and looked around and then she took a deep breath - nothing had happened.

When she turned to leave, however, she noticed a change in the rear part of the room; where shortly before has been a part of the bookshelf, there was now a black, square opening in the wall. She approached the formerly hidden door in disbelief and peered into the darkness inside.

"May I ask what you're doing?"

With a gasp Anna jumped and pressed her back against the shelf. Her breath stopped, until she recognized that Bruce Wayne leaned in the entrance to the study and studied her with a raised brow and charming smirk on his lips.

"I…" Her heart rushed and wanted to shatter in her chest, when Bruce approached with large steps.

"You…?"

Anna stuttered, breathed out briefly and tried to regain control of her emotional state. Bruce closed the secret door with a placid expression on his face and gazed at her.

"I was only stretching my legs." she lied, hoping he would not be angry with her, even though she was a stranger in his house and neither of them knew each other at all—and she _was_ snooping.

"And you discovered the piano?"

He took another step, and he was so close to her she could almost touch him and he reached back and closed the cover of the piano. His friendliness made her nervous because he had no real reason to be that nice to her.

Bruce reached out his arm and touched Anna's shoulder. She felt the warmth, which spread from his hand and radiated into her frosty bones.

"You really shouldn't be in here, Anna. Come with me." He ran his hand over her back and pushed her away from the wall towards the door with gentle pressure.

"Where—where are we going?" Anna was seriously concerned, but Bruce smiled at her.

"Though there are many places in this room we could go, there are few places I like to be this early in the morning."  
He led her through the doorway, "We are going to the kitchen. Would you like some coffee?"

* * *

Almost amused Bruce watched the young woman, devouring one sandwich after the other. By the look of it, he had led her exactly to the place, she had been looking for, the kitchen.

He watched her eat with a quiet satisfaction, because it showed that her illness seemed to be vanishing slowly.  
Besides she was much too thin for his taste.

"Another coffee?" he asked and Anna nodded. Bruce poured in a second cup and decided to bring up a pressing issue.

"Now, Anna, did you decide to stay with us until you made a full recovery?"

She looked at him in distrust. "Do I have a choice?"

"You have. I can only hope that you stay. I am worried I will find you again in a few days half frozen in the snow, if I let you go today."

Anna looked thoughtfully and she did not seem to know what to say, and Bruce wanted to lessen her confusion.

"Anna, I know about your drug problem and in a city like this it is nothing unusual." He had a thoughtful expression on his face, "I also found a small amount in your coat, so it is not a secret to me."

Surprised, she choked slightly on the sip of coffee she had been drinking. Her pale cheeks turned light pink, she could not look into Bruce's eyes.

"I can help you."

Anna shook her head. "I don't think so."

Bruce tried to catch her gaze. Behind her desolate state he could make out a pretty young girl, standing at the edge of self-destruction, crying out for help. Maybe it was a kind of Messiah Complex, but somehow he felt responsible for her.

He sensed that she felt like she was being forced into a corner. "I don't want to force you into anything, but a young woman like you should not be giving up on her life at such a young age." He smiled weakly, "Believe me I know what I'm talking about, you can stay here as long as you want. I can also offer you the medical attention you need."

Bruce cleared his throat, a sound that he could only hope that she did not take the wrong way. "I am trying to help you, I don't just go around picking up everyone... Though I wish I could sometimes."

Anna had stopped chewing and finally looked into his eyes. Her bright, green eyes sent a shiver down his spine and a thought formed in his head, which confused him slightly. With his lifestyle, he had unfortunately only limited time for women and quite none for serious intentions—besides he barely knew the woman before him.

"I do feel compelled to help you and I want you to know that I do not expect anything in return. I am away from the Manor most of the time anyway with work and you already know Alfred. He will take care of you, exactly as he does for me. And I can tell you, he does that very well."  
He leaned forward, "He is an Englishman."

The hint of a smile appeared on her face for the first time and she put down the coffee cup.

"I can go whenever I want?" She asked hesitating.

"Anytime," Bruce promised.

"And you do not want anything in return?"

"Of course not."

Anna rubbed her bony fingers and pondered this for a short moment. "Okay, I will stay."

Bruce smiled at her, it would be nice to have another person around the house, even for a short time.

"Thanks Mister Wayne." again she watched him closely and gave a faint smile.

"Call me Bruce."

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Anna had spent six days in the Manor and Alfred had to admit that she was an extraordinarily pleasant person, when he caught sight of her. Most of the time she spent in the room, Bruce had arranged for her. A close physician friend looked after her each day and eased her through the withdrawal pain. In his opinion she was already on the mend, since she had not used in a while.

During the day she spent most of her time sleeping and crept through the property mainly at night, sat at the fire-place for hours, and did not speak much. But she was very grateful for the aid, which she seemed very grateful for and didn't want to make a lot of fuss.

Master Bruce was rarely at home, his nightly patrols picking up again and stabilizing his empire made his daytime work even harder.

But when they crossed each others path, Alfred noticed a certain peacefulness fall over his features. Anna seemed to benefit him; her calm nature was his compensation to the exciting lifestyle, in which he just accustomed himself. In the early morning hours he had seen them together twice in the living room.  
Anna who spent the time watching the fire, while Master Bruce, usually passed out from exhaustion, at first in the chair but then later on the other end of the couch across from Anna.

* * *

"Bruce." Anna nudged Bruce Wayne gently at the shoulder. "Bruce, you have to get up."

He gave a grumpy noise and Anna smirked. Quite a few hours ago he had settled next to her on the couch, in sweats and an old t-shirt. She had already come to the realization that he looked good in whatever he was wearing. Anna did not ask what he did during the nights, when he came and went, and without recognizable routine she couldn't begin to guess what he was doing. Though when he arrived at Wayne Manor he was wired with adrenaline, but tired quickly.

The last few days seemed like a dream to her. After living on the streets so long, she hadn't been used to sleeping in a warm, soft bed and receiving three meals a day. Sometimes she was even embarrassed, when Alfred brought her breakfast or made her bed, while she took a hot shower—because it wasn't something she was accustomed to.

She hadn't done anything to deserve this and so she owed Bruce Wayne her life. The only thing he desired in return was her companionship and a bit of conversation. Anna loved talking to him, however it was mainly small talk. He respected her borders and didn't ask for her private life and so did she. They told each other as much as they waned to and enjoyed that there was someone listening. During their nightly conversations he often fell asleep as he did now.

"Shall I make you some coffee?" she whispered softly.

Still with closed eyes Bruce turned his head into her direction. "Didn't Alfred make breakfast?"

"No, he went to run some errands, and it is nearly 11 o'clock."

Bruce opened an eye, "Coffee would be great."

* * *

Anna clanged to her cup like every morning and observed Bruce during his morning ritual. Black Coffee, orange juice with toast and roasted bacon with eggs. Bruce didn't feel the slightest bit uncomfortable with her eyes taking in his every move. She did not intend to annoy him or to catch his attention; she simply made it a habit to observe her surroundings and besides the Manor was still pretty new to her. She had come to trust him and Alfred as much as she could muster, and he could not deny her this certain kind of distrust or caution she learned while living on the street.

"That looks bad." Anna's voice had also grown stronger, but was still dark and calm, somehow resembling velvet. Bruce turned to her and looked at her with a questioning glance, while Anna pointed in his direction.

"Your arm." she stated simply. He looked down and noticed a dark-blue mark, which showed off under his shirt at his elbow, and Bruce hadn't even noticed it before she pointed it out.

"Oh, do you remember the piano in the study?"

She nodded unconfident, obviously still remembering the incident a few days ago. After that he hadn't caught her anywhere else but in her room, the kitchen or the living room.

"The stool is in a really bad spot and the piano hurts when you run in to it." Bruce states nonchalantly, "I think I will have to reorganize that room."

Anna nodded and was satisfied with that answer. She was not dumb and he had already noticed that she did not fall for many of his excuses, but she left him to his little secrets as he did for her. He did not even know her surname until today. Naturally he had done some investigating about whom he had brought into his house, but she was nowhere registered nor had she attracted attention by authorities.

He gulped down the rest of his orange juice and sat down beside her on the kitchen counter, "You look much better today."

She turned her head to him and showed a small smile that made her fine features appear more beautiful. Under the dishevelled hair and the worn clothing a naturally beautiful woman could be seen. Bruce had gotten new clothes for her, that were still a bit big on her, fingers and cheekbones were not quite as thin and her long black hair was shining naturally again.

"Thanks. I only need a little sleep now," She stated, like him she had a strange way spending her days and nights that contradicted the way the rest of the world spent their time.

"Caffeine doesn't make it very easy to sleep does it?" He questioned.

"Everyone has bad habits." She drained her cup, "Replace one addiction by another."

Bruce had also gotten to know her way of saying much by using few words and her sharp sarcasm, but he had gotten accustomed to it.

Anna stood and began to make her way out of the kitchen, just as the heavy front doors opened loudly and a female voice sounded through the lounge.

She looked at Bruce questioningly, but he just rose with a sudden smile on his face. Anna followed him to the door of the kitchen and watched Bruce greet a lovely dark-haired woman with much enthusiasm. They traded some warm words and shortly after that the woman eyed her and Bruce led her through the lounge in Anna's direction.

"Rachel, this is Anna. Anna, Rachel Dawes."

Rachel radiating self-confidence reached her hand out and smiled at her. She was nearly as tall as Bruce and her clothes gave her a very sophisticated, no nonsense look. Her clean-cut appearance suddenly made Anna feel very small and insignificant compared to the beautiful woman before her.

"It's nice to meet you Anna."

Anna tried to force a smile and took her hand, "Hi."

Bruce began, "Rachel is an old friend and we don't get to see each other very often." He laid an arm around her waist and looked at his friend.  
"We are going to go out for a little while, I hope you don't mind."

The two friends shared an intimate look that told Anna more about their relationship than Bruce's words told her that left her with an inexplicable empty feeling.

"I was going up to bed anyway." Anna almost whispered and raised her hand to wave goodbye, and then she escaped into direction of the stairs.

Rachel already turned to the front door while Bruce stopped at the stairs and was suddenly very close to Anna.

"Good night Anna," he whispered with a smile on his face.

"Good night Bruce," Anna replied and went upstairs alone, with a strange feeling in her gut.

* * *

When Anna awoke later in the evening, she went down to leave for the kitchen when she passed by the dining room, Bruce had not used since she had been there. Now she saw him with his childhood best friend, having dinner by the candlelight. Rachel just laughed about something Bruce said and Anna felt an unpleasant sting in her chest, so she decided to continue for the kitchen, without being noticed by one of them.

The nasty feeling spread down to her stomach and she had to support herself against the kitchen cabinet, as briefly everything went black before her eyes. Anna tried to pull herself together and blamed the symptoms of withdrawal for the pain, which appeared strongly sometimes, and sometimes very weakly.

But the sight of Bruce Wayne, sitting there happily with this other woman suddenly made something clear to Anna. She had been searching for a place in the life of this other man, where there was none. Bruce Wayne led his own life of luxury, with friends she didn't know and matters she didn't have anything to do with.

He had taken her in for a short while until she had become healthy again, nothing more and Anna had shoved away the thoughts how she should continue, after her condition had improved. Now it was time for the next step, but Anna wasn't sure if she was able to do this step alone. But she could not take very much more from Bruce Wayne.

Her appetite had passed and Anna crept up the stairs again and closed the door of her room behind her. She took the battered coat that was her brother's out of the wardrobe and she collapsed onto the bed. The coat did not smell like Richard any more, but when Anna closed her eyes, she believed to feel his comforting present.

When she hugged the garment to herself, her fingers felt out something long and round that had obviously slipped into the interior of the coat. She sat up and slipped the object out, and then she held her breath...

* * *

**Enough for now - but there will be more when I get the next chapter from my beta! Hope you liked it so far!**  
**Please review :D!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Well...no, there is no excuse for being so late - I'm sorry. But now we can go on and I will update faster. Promised :).  
Thanks for your reviews, favorites and story alerts! And thanks for Pepper, my dear beta - communication across half of the globe isn't always easy - but effective :D!

* * *

Chapter 5:

At the moment his house seemed to be enormous to Bruce. He had been searching for Anna, even looked for her down in the Batcave with an unpleasant feeling growing within him, and slowly he ran out of ideas about where she could be. Not even Alfred knew where she was. He was just on the way through the garden, when he saw her shape on the graveled driveway.

"Anna!"

From far away he could see her tense as he called for her but she relaxed fast as she made out Bruce running right at her. He smiled as she tried to control her hair as she walks in the whipping wind.

"Where have you been? I have been looking for you for hours."

Anna gave him an innocent smile and searched for words. She still was not an eloquent talker but this was one of her lovely characteristic Bruce loved so much. In everything that she did she was different to every other woman he knew. She wasn't after compliments, honestly blushed when she got one from him. Her natural beauty was stunning but she never wanted to attract attention on purpose.

"I...well you said that I could go anytime."

Bruce remembered their conversation two weeks ago.

"I went in to the city, I called a cab." she said, nervousness in her voice and her eyes not looking directly into his. Something wasn't right with her, but he didn't ask her about it. She always felt that uneasiness when someone asked her about her condition or what she was doing, maybe she wasn't well.

He came closer and casually stroked a strand of hair behind her ear. They often shared such little gestures, but Bruce had not dared to go further yet.

"You were alone?" She nodded.

"Alone? In Gotham City?" He asked worried and Anna nodded again sheepishly.

Only hesitating she came out with the truth. "I was searching for a job and looked for an apartment."

Bruce froze. He had known that that this moment would come, but he wasn't expecting it to be this fast.

"Why didn't you tell me? As you know half of the city is connected to my company, and I can give you a job if you feel that you are ready for it," He tried to first ignore the fact that she planned to leave Wayne Manor.

Her striking face suddenly grew hard and she still looked behind him. It was obvious that she was looking for a way out of the situation, but Bruce saw no reason for her to feel that uncomfortable.

"You have done so much for me Bruce, too much. I don't want to be a burden on you."

Bruce grabbed her chin softly and forced her to look into his eyes. Her skin was cold, though she was wearing the warm coat Bruce had given her and her eyes seemed glazed and tired.

"You are not a burden to me, Anna, and you're not one for Alfred. We like to have you here and it would be an honor for me if you would let me help you."

Anna took his hand and shoved it away almost rough. "You helped me enough. I'll manage all right." she almost shouted angry at him, walking away from him quickly heading upstairs up the stairs toward the Manor.

Bruce frowned at her blaze, which was so strange for her. He watched her taking resolute steps towards the front door and decided to let her go and calm down. Whatever was worrying her, he would find out when the time was right.

* * *

By late evening, Bruce sat at the window in his living room and stared into the darkness outside. He should be out on patrol, but there was something that had been bothering and distracting him. He could not go out before he had clarified a private thing. With a plan in the back of his mind he went up to the sleeping rooms and knocked at Anna's door.

"Anna?" He asked loud enough so she had to hear it on the other side.

"Wait!" She yelled from inside the room and Bruce did.

After a few moments the door opened and Anna stood half behind the door with wet hair and just wrapped in a big white towel.

"Um, am I interrupting?"

Anna stroke her wet hair out of her face, with a relaxed smile. She looked much better than earlier that day and Bruce hoped that she would not shut him out this time.

"No, no. What is it?" she clutched to her towel and made no move to let him in.

His gaze wandered quickly over her body and her naked slender legs but he called himself together just as quickly. Her female curves had defined on her hips and chest, after she had gained some healthy weight back and it suited her very well.

"What I want to say may take awhile, maybe I'll come back later." He goes to turn away slowly.

Unlike he had expected Anna shook her head and opened the door completely. "No, come in, please. I will get changed, give me a minute."

She gestured for him to come in him in and flitted into the bathroom. Bruce stepped in, closed the door and looked around as he suddenly recognized that he had not been in her room once. It was inordinately clean; no personal possessions were lying anywhere and the only items on the dressers and such were there before she had begun to live in the room. A suitcase stood in the corner next to her tidy made bed, but except that nothing indicated that someone really lived in the room.

Anna had changed into an old pair of sweats, which were his when he was in his early twenties when he was slighter, and begun to comb her long black hair. She wore a white t-shirt which was one of the garments he had grabbed for her on the first day.

"So what's up?" She asked slowly approaching to him. Bruce felt slightly anxious at the sight of her and the sweet scent of oranges that surrounded her and tried to ignore the prickle in his stomach.

"I want to talk to you about our conversation outside this afternoon." Anna combed her hair impassively and stared into his eyes silently.

"I have come to care a lot about you… And I would regret letting you go so soon." He said, and Anna stopped in her movement, straightened and crossed her arms, her face like stone.

"You think that as soon as you lose sight of me I will get down to the drugs again, right?"

Bruce was prepared to that response. "No, that's not what I mean. My reasons are more selfish."

He stepped closer to her until she had to lift her head slightly to look up at him. She didn't move away and Bruce dropped his voice. "I would miss you!"

"You will find _other_ company." She said with a dark, hard voice and Bruce looked at her questioningly, "Rachel..." she said simply and her eyes refused to meet his.

Bruce suddenly understood, Anna believed that Rachel was his girlfriend and that she would not be welcome at the Manor any longer, "Anna, Rachel is an old friend. We agreed upon sharing a friendship but not _that _kind of friendship."

She looked at him again; her arms still crossed arms, unbelieving. Bruce gently grabbed her shoulders and bent down to meet her eyes.

"What must I do to get you to stay?" He nearly whispered.

Anna opened her mouth but no word came out. The tension in the air around them was tangible and Bruce took his chance, gave in to an impulse and fast laid his lips on hers. She jumped slightly, but didn't back away from him as his hands stroked over her arms and loosened their folding. He could feel gooseflesh begin to raise on her skin under his fingers and deepened his kiss.

A faint noise escaped her lips as she leaned into him and their kiss grew more passionate. Bruce shoved his hand under her t-shirt to embrace her narrow waist and enjoyed the feeling of her always cold but soft skin. He had to restrain his desire for her, that had grown slowly but all the more longing, because she seemed so fragile to him.

But Anna accommodated him and let her hand wander up and down his spine and pressed her lean body against his. Breathless their lips separated and she looked at him with an excitement in her eyes, he hadn't seen before.

"That could help." She murmured before kissing him anew and pulling him close to her.

* * *

Bruce Wayne was passionate and didn't hesitate a moment, wanting her here and now. His great hands wandered over every inch of her body, his muscular shape pressing her down into the sheets.

Anna couldn't remember when she had been so eager for the touch of a man.

At least she couldn't even remember when she had felt that pleasurable, warm emotion towards someone.

She had had several amours when she was a youth, starting with the first kiss right up to other more or less pleasant encounters with men, with and without the influence of drugs.

But this was different. From the moment she had recognized Bruce as her rescuer, she had felt attracted to him, physically and mentally. She had kept herself at distance, because actually he had been a stranger to her and her nature was distrustful, but from the moment she had seen him with Rachel it was clear to her that she had evolved deeper feelings for him, emotions she shouldn't have. Till recently she had believed that he belonged to another.

But Anna hadn't been able to take her eyes of him. She had watched him when he was around her, admiring his graceful way of walking and the movement when he ran his great hands through his dark hair. She knew every line of his face, the small wrinkles on his forehead when he was in thoughts and the soft line of his lips when he smiled without showing his teeth and the amused twinkle in his usually serious, thoughtful eyes. When he was around she felt save, his warm, masculine scent engulfing her every time he was near.

And now he had confessed his feelings for her, had asked her not to leave him. He had silenced the inner voice of hers that had said 'no' and now his soft lips left paths of fire on her naked skin and just for that moment she let all the thoughts, which had worried her the days before, behind.

The tender bites at her neck and over her collarbone made her shiver in anticipation. He left marks on her skin to show that she was his and so Bruce made clear, that he wouldn't let her go, not tonight.

* * *

After Anna had fallen asleep Bruce was so wired, he left the property in the form of the Batman and slipped through the dark alleys of Gotham like a shadow.

It was early morning and the sun had nearly risen by the time he came home, he cast off his second identity and went back to his lover, hopefully still sleeping after the long night. But as he silently opened the door to her bedroom and noticed that she was no longer in her bed. Bruce called her name and took a look into the darkened bathroom, but Anna wasn't in it.

He looked around and noticed that that room was as empty as it was yesterday, her clothes weren't lying on the floor where he had left them after undressing her, only his sweats were lying neatly folded on the made bed. After he had opened her closet and determined that it was empty he remembered the suitcase he had seen the previous evening and when he looked it was gone.

A bad feeling bubbled up within him. He went outside and looked down to the entrance hall, noticing Alfred, already up and in his usual dress.

"Alfred!" he called him and rushed down the stairs.

"Yes sir?" Alfred answered as calm as he always was.

"Have you seen Anna?" Bruce was already frantic.

"No, I thought she would be with you." Alfred coughed lightly but lost the spark in his voice as he discovered the concern in Bruce's face. "Did something happen?"

Bruce nodded, ran a hand through his hair and cursed. "She is gone, Alfred. She's gone."

* * *

**Please review :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thank you so much for the reviews :) - I'm glad you like it!

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Chapter 6:

Anna dropped the dish towel onto the bar counter and sighed. Her feet hurt, her limbs were stiff and she had an unbearable headache. She switched off the lights in the bar and meandered up the stairs in the dim opening the door to the small apartment above the expanse of the bar and turned her head in disgust.

"Sal?" She called once she entered the room and fought her way through the chaos and clutter in the living room all the way to the window and opened it up wide. Even at night the noise from the street streets down the belowwere near deafening, but Anna accepted that.

"Sal, when was the last time you let in some fresh air today?"

She heard the scratchy voice of her roommate coming from the adjacent kitchen and she didn't sound anywhere near sober. "Is that what you call fresh darling?"

Anna kicked a plastic wrap out of her way and walked over to Sal who still remained in the small kitchen. She looked as wrecked as she sounded, maybe even a bit worse.

Sally Shore was nearly thirty, but looked a lot older. Her blond locks sprawled wildly around her head and her arms were precariously thin, as was her face which always bares a bored expression including her watery blue eyes.

When Anna had met her accidentally in the city a week ago, they had talked about her situation. She was not a lovely or very selfless person but there was one thing that actually connected between them; Sally was Richard's ex-girlfriend, and was still mourning his death and so she had been the one who offered Anna a job and a place to live.

Her proposal had distracted her, leaving her deep in thought as she returned to Wayne Manor, when she ran into Bruce in front of the mansion. She knew that she had hurt his feelings, sneaking away from his house in the middle of the night, while he was gone, but she had not seen any other way to leave him and get back into the life that she felt she deserved.

Sal's apartment was a lousy accommodation and the job as barmaid was considerably worse, but Anna was glad at least to have a place to sleep, a few dollars in her pocket and a lukewarm shower.

"Did you have something to eat today?" She questioned and threw a scrutinizing look into the fridge and took a yogurt out, the only thing that had not passed its expiration date. She put it in front of Sal and sat down across from her at the table.

"Thank you." Sal gave her a wryly smile. "Do you want a service in return?"

She broke out a needle and a small flask with a pink liquid in it wiggled it in front of Anna.

She swallowed hard, listening to the restless feeling in her limbs, that had accompanied her all day and the headache that would not get better because of the bad air in the room. Hesitating she stretched out her hand and took the injection.

"Baby, you don't have to beat yourself up every time you take a hit." Sal said a bit sardonic. "At least you tried to give it up, but it didn't work so just forget about it. As long as you can still think straight, unlike me, everything will be just fine."

Sal was right, Anna thought, she was beating herself up from the moment she found the small flask with a last bit of the drug in the inner lining of Richard's coat. For hours she had turned the drug in her fingers, thinking about Bruce dining downstairs, and fought internally with herself on whether or not she wanted—no needed to have a hit of the addictive drug. Only when the doctor had visited her the next morning and had left the doctor's bag open something broke in her.

She had taken a needle out and hid it until everything had become quite in Wayne Manor. Bruce hadn't shown up the whole day and night, a fact that had made her decision way easier.

The familiar, numbing feeling of the Ketamine-mixture had made her doubts and confusion go away for several hours. It had just been a small dose because Anna didn't had the heart to use up everything, saving something for the days to come. But her weakness had left her crying at dawn and so she had made her choice to go.

But Bruce Wayne along with her time with him was in the past. It all seemed like a dream to Anna and the drugs helped her to ease the pain she felt when she thought about Bruce. She came to terms with the life that she has chosen to lead, because it was the one she deserved.

* * *

Weeks passed and still Batman sat on the roofs of Gotham city and watched over his city. His ears supported by an expensive earpiece tracked every suspicious conversation near by; his eyes captured every predatory practice that was going on in the streets.

Word had spread that the Bat acted harder and more brutally then he did before, normally this wasn't his strategy, he had left the judging to the police. But lately he lost control over himself more often. His days were loaded with the work he had brought upon himself, trying to cover up his hurt feelings and at night he moved around with these restless, rampant feelings in his guts.

At least he wasn't that distracted by a certain black-haired woman capturing his sight or a certain name crossing his ears any more. The hope to cross Anna's path—be it in the suit of his alter ego—had made its way deep into his unconscious and even sometimes came to his consciousness, over and over again renewing the hope even when he donned the suit…

Batman knew that this hope was in vain in a city like this, concerning a girl that had lived on the street, which made one able to hide with ease. The suppression of his feelings strengthened the unyielding rage that bubbled within him even more and so he soared down into the dark streets in search of trouble.

* * *

Craig sat at the bar counter, his pale blue eyes followed Anna with every step she took. She felt uncomfortable every time the emaciated man was near, but it wasn't her power to send him away, because the bar belonged to Sally.

"Do you think Sal will ever come down today?" He murmured to Anna with his alcohol-soaked voice, holding a glass of vodka in his hand.

"She told me on the phone she would get dressed and then she will come, Craig." Anna replied stressed, really hoping what she just said was what would happen, but not believing it to be the truth. Sal had spent the whole day in bed, her condition worse than ever before. She had always been dramatic when it came to drugs and alcohol, and Anna was slightly worried. Sal had been in this hole of illness for far too long, and Anna feared she would never get out.

"Listen Steph," Anna sighed as Craig started again, calling her by the alias name she created for when she dealt with strangers. "After Sal and I get back, I was wondering if you would think about having a beer with me."

She leaned onto the counter with her elbows and stared into his eyes which were surrounded by dark circles. The simple thought about being touched by him made her sick, but she gave him a faux smile and blinked. "I will think about that."

She walked away from him before he could respond and asked one of the waitresses to watch the bar shortly before she moved up the stairs to look after Sal. When she stepped into her bedroom she found her roommate where she had left her that same morning.

"Sal, Craig is waiting downstairs and he is really annoying today! Do you believe you can get out of bed today?" The sarcasm in her voice was unmistakable, but Sal didn't seem to mind, just turned her head weakly in Anna's direction.

"Does it look like I can?"

Anna sighed audible at the wretched sight before her. Sal looked as if she were going to die out at any moment, hardly able to open her eyes, pale, thin and sickly. For a short moment she was wondered if she herself had looked the same, when she had met Bruce for the first time but shoved away the thought immediately.

"Sal, you can't go on like this. Did have you looked at yourself lately?"

Sal smiled faintly at her. "It'd probably be best if I didn't, darling. Will you do me a favor?"

Anna guessed what was about to come and sat down on a chair standing next to her bed.

"I could get rid of all of the rum for you, prepare you a nice hot shower, make you some coffee, and if you're not sober by then, I can give you a slap in the face, if you want me to." Anna said more softly, not really meaning what she was saying.

Sal understood but ignored her well-intentioned suggestions. "Would you go ahead with the deal with Craig this evening?"

Anna shook her head resolutely. "No Sal, you know that I don't want anything to do with him and his deals." She said that with audible disgust. "He wastes his time with people that are neither good for him or for you. Not to mention me!"

"But he needs a driver, you know that, otherwise he has no possible way of getting the merchandise over here." Sal pled.

Craig was a miserable being in Anna's eyes but he was the only one Sal trusted when it came to their drugs. He was kind of a middle man and worked close to Falcone's men, who sold them. Anna hadn't forgotten her encounter with them then, a little scar was still displayed on her forehead as a reminder had it not been for Batman then she wouldn't be alive.

"Sal—" she hesitated as the older woman seized her hand and gripped it as tightly as she could muster.

"Our supply is going to run out soon and Craig knows this. And he also knows that I do not take anything from anyone but him." Anna watched her nearly desperate face and remained quiet.

"I need this Anna, much more than you do. I took you in, please, could you do this for me? Just this one time."

She reached Anna's conscience and after a short time of thinking about the unpleasant task she nodded. "Okay, I'll go, but just this once—for you."

* * *

Anna took her place behind the counter again, Craig was still sitting over a glass of vodka and looked at her expectantly.

"Sal can't come. I get off work at eight, we'll meet in front of the bar then."

Craig grinned and tossed down his drink, "Fine. See you later, cutie."

* * *

The Jeep rolled inconspicuously through the gate of the harbor and drove towards the containers. Anna was busy blocking Craig's dirty advances without throwing him out of the car, and her heart was beating heavily in her chest, the darkness and the anxiety bit at with the fear of being surrounded by large men who could take her down in an instant, Anna was terrified and deep down wished she could go back.

Craig directed her over to one of the shipping containers and indicated for her to stop in front of it. "Do you want to come with me or do you want to wait in here? I think you will be more safe staying with me, cutie."

Anna had to agree him whether she wanted to or not, to stay alone in the car would be worse than the alternative.

They got out together and Anna walked cautiously behind him, feeling her heartbeat up into her throat and she tried frantically to suppress a shiver. She jumped involuntarily as several heavy built men walked round the corner and moved toward them.

"Mister Harris," One of them turned to face Craig, "Nice to meet you.".

The clothes of the man speaking were obviously more expensive looking than the clothing of the others and the control he exudes told her that he was the leader bunch. Anna knew that it was not Falcone, because she had seen him once and was glad that he was not in fact here.

"The same to you," Craig answered approaching the man with a suitcase in his hand. "My usual partner is unfortunately unable to be here today, but her substitute is as harmless as the other, so you don't have to pay her any mind."

Anna would have preferred to stay invisible, but now all of the eyes focused on her and she was glad that she was clothed according to the cold weather with a hooded sweatshirt. Anna believed that every bit of female flesh shown could be too much for these men.

"Good, so let's get to the deal." Craig said and held the suitcase out to the leader, who passed it along to one of the henchmen. He opened the top and count the money within it.

Anna's anxiousness grew from minute to minute, the trembling in her limbs was no longer bearable and she looked around in fear, almost surely that she had seen something dart in the shadows of the containers.

She shifted from one foot to the other as the henchman with the money called to the leader. "Hey boss, something is missing!"

"That's bad," The unnamed leader said slowly and watched Craig who began to stutter.

"I- I thought it was the amount you demanded. Nothing was taken after I counted it the last time."

The leader approached him ominously slow and reached into his pocket. "You already owe Falcone a large amount of money, Craig, and you tried to screw me once before this! Do you think I'm stupid?"

After he had uttered that, everything happened quickly. The dark shadow Anna had thought she had seen before, suddenly shot out of the dark and threw three of the men to the ground. They didn't have time to react, before the shadow overwhelmed and put them out of action. The other men froze in shock before recovering quickly and went to take on the Batman in a frenzied way.

Anna watched the scene in amazement and was unable to move. The first traces of the police sirens became audible to her through the night and suddenly Craig ran past her like the bat out of hell and before Anna realized what was happening, he swung himself into the car, started the engine and was gone—without her.

"No!" Anna screamed after him and turned desperately around, unable to decide what to do next. Batman was still busy with Falcone's men and the sirens approached dangerously fast as the moments passed. Anna moved quickly to the containers and slipped in between them as she searched for a safe way out. While she ran she looked behind her to see if she was being chased before she crashed into a hard obstacle.

A scream escaped her mouth and she recoiled as she looked up at Batman, who was towering over, his shadowed eyes staring down into hers and his deep rasping voice pierced her all the way to the bone. "What are you doing here?"

Anna looked around this time frightened at the sight of the Bat that she remained silent.

"Get away from here, now!" He growled quickly, before he turned and ran into the opposite direction, his cape flapping behind him. Anna sprinted after him, already hearing the voices of some policemen. They had left the containers and Batman turned a corner as something hit Anna from the side and threw her to the full forced to the ground.

"I got her!" A man yelled next to her ear and pulled her arms behind her back roughly. Handcuffs clicked and Anna did not have a chance of fighting against the strong policemen who pulled her up onto her feet roughly and pushed her into the direction of one of the police cars.

As the man pushed her head down and shoved her into the car, her thoughts were of her last glimpse of the bat, as he disappeared behind the corner and left her behind, and alone again.

* * *

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	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Excuse me updating so late all the time, the world is turning and deadlines for semiar papers are looming - and it's carneval!  
But thanks to everyone for reviewing and reading :)!

* * *

Chapter 8:

Anna convulsed in pain on the hard concrete floor and tried to shut out the buzz around her. Men were laughing and yelling at each other, but nothing understandable filtered down to her. She was only hoping they would leave her alone, as she sat hugging her knees in a corner of the big cell they had put her in. She laid her head on her knee caps and tried to vanish.

The policemen that had questioned her had not spared her and had lived up to their bad reputation. Anna couldn't imagine how many hours had passed, since she had been caught and been brought to the police station.

The cops had believed at first that she belonged to Falcone and they had tried to beat the truth out of her. But even as she had assured that she had been with Craig, they had blamed her being a part of a group of Dealers. Anna had denied the accusation truthfully, but it had brought her even more beating. After she hadn't been able to stand straight any more the cops had thrown her into one of the great cells.

What would happen now, she didn't know.

Batman had left her alone. First, he had fooled her, pretending to care about her and helping her to run away from the cops. But instead she had been walking right into a trap and Anna concluded that he was not better than any of the policemen. He obeyed his own rules and applied them to others, no questions asked, he just assumed people to be criminals.

Her anger over him was only outranked by her fear and desperation over her situation.

After a while the pain in her limbs mixed to a single pounding all over her body and she stretched out her legs groaning.

"Anna Reyes?" Someone called into the room.

Anna didn't react at first; it had been an age since anyone called her by her full name and she was wondering how they uncovered what it was.

"Miss Reyes!" the voice of the policemen grew louder and so Anna raised her head.

"Yes?" Her voice was hoarse and Anna coughed. Her throat was aching from screaming.

"Someone posted your bail, you can go!"

Anna frowned and looked up in surprise. She wondered who would care enough about her to bail her out of prison, but also who did she know who could afford it. Sal was unfit to do so and Craig would be the last one to care about her after his cowardly getaway.

The cop unlocked the cell and pointed at her. Anna stood up slowly trying to ignore the pain in her aching bones and walked with a limp behind him.

In the lobby of the precinct total chaos was all around her and Anna saw no one familiar to her.

Then her glimpse reached the back of a dark-haired, broad shouldered man in a black shirt and a sob escaped her as he turned around and looked at her with the brown warm eyes of Bruce Wayne.

* * *

Bruce helped Anna into her coat and held her close to him as he led her to a car which was waiting in front of the police station. The young woman clung to him and reluctantly let him go as he opened the passenger door for her. Bruce took seat on the driver's side, closed the door and sighed, then he looked at Anna.

He took note of all of her injuries: she had cuts and bruises all over her face, her jeans were bloody and ripped at the knees and the list went on.

She had lowered her eyes as she addressed him silently, "How did you know I was here?"

Her hoarse voice cut through the silence in the car and for Bruce it was strange to be at her side again. It had been weeks since she had broken his heart and left him alone. He had been angry and bad-tempered about the fact that a woman he didn't really know had managed to steal his heart so easily and then let him fall as fast again, without any noticeable reason.

But at the moment he had recognized her at the harbor any kind of anger he had felt about her had faded and the warmth for her had returned immediately. Though it hadn't ended as he had planned, he hated himself for letting her stay in the custody of the cops of Gotham for so long.

"Not all of the cops in this city are corrupt; I know one or two that are good to me. I told them to keep an eye out for someone like you and they called me, when they saw you. I came as soon as I could."

Bruce couldn't tell if she believed him or not, her eyes looked so unbelievably tired and she was as white as a ghost.

"Thank you Bruce," she murmured and her green eyes fixed onto his.

Following a warm feeling that spread through him he reached out his hand to lay it behind her head, to stroke her dark hair. It was clean, just a bit rumpled up and her clothes didn't look as though she came directly from the streets. As he brushed a strand behind her ear he saw the little scar on her forehead, left from the wound she had gotten at their very first encounter.

"Do you want me to take you home?" He asked.

She let her head fall back into his hand and stared through the windshield. "I don't know if I want to go there right now. My roommate is to blame for my getting involved in this."

She seemed to think about her words and corrected herself, "And Batman."

Bruce froze, "Batman?"

He thought about last night. She had been close behind him, but after he had turned the corner the cops had caught her faster than he could react and there had been no way for him to get her out of their hands.

"I fell into his trap." The anger in her voice wasn't easy to miss.

"I thought he would help me, but he had barely gotten away when a fat cop threw himself upon me and locked me up."

She flared up a bit and her voice and her hands started to tremble. Bruce decided to ignore her anger upon Batman and spoke softly to her, "Would you like to come with me?"

Anna smiled faintly. "Can you forgive me, Bruce?"

He thought about her words, but at the sight of her face the anger he had felt was gone completely.

"I never blamed you, Darling." Bruce lied to soothe her, leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead. She gave him a thankful smile and he started the engine, driving out into the morning traffic

* * *

Anna was counting while they drove through the streets of Gotham, watching the dawn at the horizon. She had been into the police station more than eight hours and added to her aching bones came another feeling that made her nervous. Her addiction wasn't quite as hard as it has been before her withdrawal in Bruce's house, but her last hit had been nearly a day ago and this was far too long.

She kneaded her fingers to suppress the shivering but stopped her movement immediately as she noticed Bruce's eyes resting on her hands. He looked at her knowingly but didn't say anything about it, instead he distracted her.

"So where do you live now?"

"On a friend's couch. She has a little apartment over a bar, so I'm working for her and she gives me a place to live."

Anna recognized in that moment, that she never had told Bruce about Richard.

"She was my brother's girlfriend," she swallowed hard; talking about her brother was still difficult for her.

"You never told me about your brother." Bruce said with his calm, soothing voice.

Anna smiled at his comment. It reminded her of her weeks with him; when they sat on his couch slowly starting develop the intense emotions for each other. It seemed like an eternity since then, but maybe she had been given a second chance now.

"We never talked about such things." She said and he responded to her with a chuckle.

"Maybe we should catch up on that."

Anna watched the softly raised corners of his mouth and felt a sting as she thought about the pain she caused him as she had left him back then without a word. He had been so good to her and he still was; she didn't deserve a man like him.

* * *

The street became less crowded as they made their way outside of the busy parts of the city, so Bruce accelerated the car. While watching him from the passenger seat, Anna saw the gleaming lights that illuminated his silhouette before he did. She drew a deep breath to yell out to him, but the crash came first, left her speechless and turned her stomach. A loud screech filled the air as she was thrown against the windshield and her last thought was about Bruce before she hit her head and lost consciousness immediately.

The gray Lamborghini rolled over three times before it slipped down the low embankment and came to a stop on the wheels. The van that had crashed into it broke and three men jumped out of it. They sprinted to the crashed car and one of them tore open the battered passenger door. With a skilful grasp he pulled out the young woman from her seat and threw her unconscious body over his shoulder.

The other two watched through the window of the driver's side and shrugged their shoulders. A car passed by and the three men ran back to their van and were gone before the sirens of the ambulance were heard.

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	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** So, let's bring this to an end, this one is shorter, but I will complete it now :)!

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Chapter 8:

Bruce woke up by the sound of a peeping rhythm and added to the unpleasant sound that pierced through his head was a dull pounding behind his forehead. His fingers were numb and didn't obey him when he tried to move them, neither did his arms and legs.

"Master Bruce?" The soft voice of his Butler mixed with the penetrating sound and Bruce constrained himself to open his eyes.

He saw Alfred bending over him calling his name again. Bruce let his eyes wander through the room and only slowly he understood where he was.

The walls were clean white and the bed he laid in wasn't his. There was a door in front of him and he saw doctors and nurses walking up and down in haste in the hallway behind it. He managed to lift his head a bit and recognized that he was still in his clothes with a needle in his arm.

"He's awake." the Butler said over his shoulder, but Bruce couldn't see with whom he spoke.

Suddenly a thought flashed through his mind.

"Anna..." He thought and said unintentionally.

"Master Bruce," Alfred touched him at his shoulder, "there is someone who would like to talk to you. Do you think you can manage that?"

Bruce understood his words, but wasn't able to think about his question, instead he asked. "Why can't I move?" He was startled by the softness of his voice.

"They delivered you a strong pain killer, the numbness in your limbs won't last long. You are in relatively fine; you will be back on your feet in no time. It's a wonder youdidn't break any bones and only sustained a concussion." He smiled slightly and Bruce thought hearing doubt in his voice, but he could be wrong and it could be concern.

He was confused.

Alfred stepped back and a man came into his line of sight. He was small, with calm eyes under his glasses and a mustache. He held his hands behind his back and looked down at Bruce questioningly.

"Mister Wayne?" He asked and a name came into his mind as he heard his voice.

"Lieutenant Gordon." he stated and suddenly remembered. He was someone to trust, warily but an ally of Batman.

_Don't you __give__yourself away, _Bruce thought concentrating on the small man before him.

"I know you're just waking up and are probably still a little groggy, but I need your help."

"What is it?" Bruce questioned, still asking himself how he came here.

"Can you remember what happened?" Gordon asked, as if he had read his mind.

Bruce tried hard to recall something, but it was hard for him to think straight. Still there was the picture of Anna's face; he knew her name and he knew how he felt for her. But there was something he couldn't quite get a grasp on.

He saw a flash of her clenched fingers in her lap, the black hair that covered the little scar on her forehead. Also her great green eyes and a deep breath flashed through his conscious. Then came a quick smell of leather and the sound of metal crunching.

"We had an accident." Bruce said what came to his mind, still not understanding what that exactly meant.

"You and Miss Reyes?" Gordon inquired patiently.

Was that her name? He couldn't remember a moment where he had heard her surname. "Anna, yes."

"You didn't dropped her off somewhere before the car crash?" the lieutenant asked.

There was a deafening noise and a stifled cry by his side in his memory, and Bruce remembered the feeling of how his breath had been pressed out of his lungs. Then came the silence.

"No, she was with me."

Suddenly the pictures added up, everything made sense and his heart jumped. Bruce fought his numb limbs and tried to sit straight, supporting himself on his elbow.

"Is Anna alright?" his voice was still rough and scratchy but louder this time, but he didn't care, there was only one thing dominating his mind. "Where is she?"

His heart was beating heavily and he felt the pain killers pumping faster through his veins, dazing him. The pounding in his head increased dangerously.

"We don't know. She wasn't with you when the ambulance arrived at the accident scene."

Bruce's memory returned bit by bit. He had been at the police station and had picked Anna up, she hadn't looked good— what had happened before?

While Bruce concentrated on the facts, Gordon kept on talking, "The car that caused the accident pulled a grab and dash because in my opinion the crash was not an accident. Miss Reyes was nowhere to be found, do you think she would just run away, leaving you there?"

She had left him once, Bruce thought, but he did not believe that she would do that this time and he voiced his opinion aloud.

"I picked her up at the police station; she had been in trouble before— involved in a drug deal. Maybe someone got to know that she had been released..."

He stopped talking and the Detective asked another question. "You think someone had a reason to hit your car intentionally and kidnap her?"

"Maybe," Bruce just said simply, still buried in thoughts. "Falcone does worse for less."

Gordon nodded at the mentionof Falcone. "I had considered that already, we will dig deeper into that."

Bruce let himself fall back onto the pillow and heard Alfred talking quietly to Gordon. "I think that's enough for now, Mister Gordon."

Gordon nodded and said goodbye. After he had left the room Bruce raised his hand slowly and looked at it. "The feeling is returning slowly, Alfred. I think I will need your help."

Alfred came closer to him, his hands behind his back and looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Need my help to do what, Master Bruce...?"

Bruce looked at him and smirked. "To put on the suit."

* * *

"Master Bruce I don't think this is a very good idea!" Alfred warned as he tried to keep up with his charge, who stepped up the stairs to the Manor as fast as he could manage.

He was still walking with a limp, but the pain killers he had gotten from one of the nurses did a good job at keeping the pain at bay. Bruce had to flirt and use his charm to get himself released early, but there were more important things for him to do now then to stay in bed and wait for his headache to disappear. He had promised the nurse to rest at home, but as the night approached, there became less and less time to rest—especially with Anna missing.

"I think I know what's good for me, Alfred. And to lay there while Jim Gordon is busy searching for Anna, alone I would guess, is definitely not good for me."

They stepped on the elevator to get down into the Batcave.

"Falcone must have realized that she was with Batman and him and I aren't exactly friends. What do you think will he do to her, now that he knows that?"

Alfred was still behind him, when Bruce left the elevator and crossing the Batcave.

"You don't feel guilty, Master Bruce, do you?" The butler asked and Bruce slowed down.

"She was involved in the bad dealat the harbor, I tried to get her out of there and I failed. She had been with the guy that had tried to cheat Falcone and as long as they don't get hold of him, he will be satisfied with her because she was there. When he knows that I accompanied her after she had been released, he kills two birds with one stone."

Bruce opened the cabinet with the suit waiting in it. He stared at it intently, planning the next step in his head, but Alfred interrupted by popping up right beside him.

"Don't you think you would be able to work way more efficiently if you would recover completely first?" Alfred asked worried. "You will risk your health this way. Detective Gordon will let you know when he's got news, why don't you rest just for a few more hours?"

Bruce turned around to his old friend and surrogate father. He saw the unease in his eyes and was moved by his genuine concern. "Alfred, do you know what that woman means to me?"

The Butler nodded knowingly but remained silent.

"The last few weeks I have tried to forget her and I don't even know that much about her. But I couldn't forget her; she was always present in my mind, no matter what I did. I did lose her once, but it won't happen again!"

Bruce swallowed at his next thought; he had shoved away until now. "If she's still alive— I will find her!"

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	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Again many changes of perspective, don't be confused...

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Chapter 9:

"Where is Craig Harris?"

Anna blinked and shook her head to settle her scattered thoughts. She could not think straight, something was blocking her concentration. Her fingers grasped the arms of the chair she sat in tightly and again she looked around at the strange faces, which that looked down to her. She caught the glimpse of a thin man, with dark hair and prominent cheek bones. He watched her meticulously over his glasses, and wrote something on a clipboard he held in his hands. He narrowed his blue stinging eyes to slits from time to time.

"Speak up, girl!" Anna jumped with fright, as the thick older man before her shouted at her roughly, bent down to her and banged on the arms of the chair. "Listen, I won't need you any longer, if you don't talk to me— and you know what that means?"

Anna still couldn't take in what he wanted from her. Since she had woken up in the empty little room, only lit by a flickering street light, she had lost track of time and hadn't been able to think straight. She was always in a state between unconsciousness and consciousness, not knowing if she was dreaming or hallucinating. A fog surrounded her, which sometimes frightened her so much she believed she had been choking. She recognized shapes in it, distorted images of people she didn't know, that uttered words she couldn't understand.

Anna felt no hunger or pain, just the exhausting change between freezing cold and blazing fire in her body. In the few short moments when her mind was suddenly clear she started to wonder where she was and how she came here. The picture of a gleaming light, surrounding the silhouette of a man came to her mind, but it was gone as fast as it had come, as was the clarity.

The voice of the gray-haired man, who still leaned over her, his face close to hers, pulled her out of her stray thoughts. "I want to know where I can find Harris, he owes me money— a lot of money! And friendship and money don't mix, wouldn't you agree?"

His words reached her but they were like spoken through a pillow, muffled and blurred.

The blue-eyed man with the clipboard joined into the conversation. "I don't think this is the right time, Mister Falcone, she doesn't have her head on straight."

The angry looking man, Falcone, turned around to him and shouted: "It has never been the right time, the entire time she has been here! I don't know you are using her as a lab rat for, Doc, but I need this woman to be lucid for once!"

"I'm afraid this will take a few hours. I did not realize that the hallucinogen would have such an enduring effect."

Falcone snorted frustrated, "I will give you one hour, Crane! If she isn't lucid then, I will shoot you both!"

* * *

The girl was forced to her feet and pushed out of the door through the large dark passageway of the old warehouse. Jonathan Crane followed her and studied his notes. The hallucinogen he had delivered into her system when she had been unconsciousness after the car crash had an astonishing effect on the test subject before him. Even without new doses the panic the hallucinogen had returned randomly during her time here. He had watched her screaming in fear in the office he had locked her in, fighting off invisible ghosts that attacked her.

She had not been able to focus on Falcone and didn't seem to understand her situation at all. He reckoned that if he did not lessen the effects of the hallucinogen she would slowly go insane.

While Falcone's men pulled her out of the hall, Crane watched how the girl's limbs relaxed and she lost control over her legs as she was walking. He would have to come up with an idea to get her coherent again.

They stepped into an improvised medical lab and Crane ordered the two men to lay the woman down onto a table in the middle of the room. The young woman moaned quietly as Crane secured her with restraints on her wrists and ankles.

"You can go now, I don't need you here." Crane told Falcone's men and they left the room without a word, but sharing disdain-filled glances. Crane really hated working with these people, but for his experiments they were appropriate; silent, ruthless and disinterested. As long as his hallucinogen was still being perfected for its purpose, he would need to work underground but when he looked down at his test person he knew that he almost achieved perfection.

He bent over Anna. Her eyes were half closed and she moved weakly.

"Can you hear me?" he asked close to her ear and a faint sigh answered his question. But her closed eyes and her unbent limbs told him that she would not begin to move for some time.

Her pale face framed by black long hair was pretty and for a short moment he felt something similar to sympathy for her confused state. But that feeling left as fast as it had come and he went to work. The antidote he had developed was still under construction and he did not have much time to optimize it.

* * *

A loud noise in the hall startled him and had nearly caused Crane to drop the small test tube with the half complete antidote.

"Damn it!" He cursed and put the test tube back onto the holding rack. He opened the door that led into the large hall and watched the utter chaos Falcone's men were taking part in. They yelled at each other, fell to the ground and shot their guns aiming at something Crane couldn't see at first.

Suddenly there was a gap between the fighting men that revealed the dark shadow that fought through the bunch of thugs as though they were rag dolls.

It was the first time Crane had ever seen the infamous Batman, which had fascinated him when he had first heard of the giant bat. His pure physical strength amazed him so much, that he hadn't thought about his own safety and realized too late, that he was an easy target, standing in the doorway.

He looked around, thinking about a way out of that situation. Behind him his test subject had begun to awaken, and started to whimper, uttering something incomprehensible, still far away in her ever present nightmarish state.

Crane ran back to his workplace, gathering his notes, while the young woman just started to fight against her chains without success.

He pressed the slips of paper close to his chest and peered out into the hall, but Batman was nowhere to be seen. Some of the men that still stood on their feet spread through the hall and swung their guns and iron bars or tried to escape. Fear was written all over their faces and the sudden disappearance of the dark creature seemed to terrify them more so than when he was there taking them down one by one.

Crane gathered his courage and flitted unnoticed along the wall into the direction of the back exit. Suddenly an arm clutched his neck and took his breath immediately. He was pulled into the shadows behind a big case and found himself looking into the dark cold eyes of the Batman. His lips were pinched and his half-covered face was filled with rage.

"Where is she?" his hissed voice pierced his marrow and bone and the panic he felt at his sight made him speechless. His gloved hand pressed closer around his throat and slowly Crane saw little red dots dancing before his eyes.

He tried to say something, but no word came out. Batman loosened his grip a bit, but pushed him harder against the wall behind him.

"I- I don't know what you're talking about!" Crane lied, hoping to escape the dark avenger and not getting killed by Falcone for betraying him at the same time.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." Batman whispered harshly, quiet enough as not to not draw the attention of other, but dangerous enough to make Crane shiver. He decided to tell the truth and save his skin now and worry about Falcone later.

He raised a shivering hand and pointed into the direction he had come from.

"Back that way, inside the office on the right. The door is— is open." He still didn't get enough air to speak normally, but Batman seemed to be content with that. He grabbed Crane by the collar and dragged him along.

* * *

Everything was clouded by a gray mist that was filled with screams and blurred noises along with the feeling of absolute helplessness that nearly drove Anna out of her mind. Desperately she tried to get control over her arms and legs, but she was somehow stuck and had lost her bearings completely.

The noises around her suddenly stopped and she remained silent too, trying to understand what was happening and to suppress the panic that was welling up inside of her. All of a sudden there was an angry scream, close to her and something grabbed her legs. Anna tried to cast off what was holding her, still not seeing anything through the fog. Hands reached out to her wrists and pulled her up and Anna gathered the last of her strength to free herself from the foreign touch and fell forward until her toes to touch the ground.

She stood upright and suddenly Anna recognized a dark shadow through the haze, the dark shadow towered over her so she looked up at it slowly. As she saw the gleaming red eyes of the demon, it bared its teeth and growled in a terrifying way that her heart had nearly stopped beating.

* * *

"What have you done to her?" Batman yelled in Crane's direction. The lean guy in the white coat ducked under his rage and stuttered with a frightened little laugh: "Just a little drug-experiment, nothing new for a junkie."

Batman had the urging need to bash his head in but that was not why he was here. Anna stumbled before him, and searched her way around the table to escape from him and thrust against a desk, loaded with appliances, powders and test tubes filled with liquids. She uttered angry cries and grabbed the edge of the table.

"Do something about that!" He shouted harshly at Crane who ducked anew.

He pointed at something behind Anna. "The antidote, it's the green one, but I don't think it's ready..."

That was enough for Batman. With a powerful twist he kicked into the face of the doctor and he fell to the ground unconsciously. Batman looked out of the small room, and noticed no one moving around in the hallway any more. Jim Gordon had been tipped off, so he and his men would probably appear at any moment.

His task was now the panicked woman in front of him.

* * *

The fear took possession of Anna's limbs and the last bit of her sane mind. The black demon approached her and aspirated frightening sounds, dark and grumbling. She wanted to get away from him, but there was an obstacle behind her that was in her way. The shape was so close to her now that she believed she recognized something familiar. In her scattered thoughts pictures assembled, the pointed ears, the dark face, shining like a mask and that voice that shook her deep inside.

"Batman!" Anna barely recognized her own voice, uttering the thought that rushed through her mind. Memories hailed down on her, clicking handcuffs and a black cape, disappearing before her eyes. Pain and bruises that teased her, and at last the face of a man, with warm brown eyes and a loving smile.

She raised her hand and hit the demon right in the face—which was covered by his cowl. Pain flashed through her hand, but she barely noticed.

"You let me down!" She sounded hysterical and the rage that rushed through her veins colored the fog around her deep red. Again and again she stroke blows upon him, smashed the rock before her with her fists until he ducked under her and disappeared out of her field of view.

She felt dizzy from effort, was short of breath and as her knees conceded she collapsed to the ground. Something bit her into the arm, but Anna was too weak to struggle. A shadow fell upon her and Anna shut her eyes in exhaustion.

* * *

Bruce drew the needle from Anna's arm and threw it away. She had closed her eyes and her breathing slowed. Her powerless hits hadn't fazed Batman, but they had Bruce Wayne.

He had been at the point of pulling of his mask to reveal to her his real face, to calm her down and bring her to her senses, but something had held him back.

While he knelt next to Anna the cops invaded outside into the hall. One of them appeared in the door gun in hand, discovered Batman and called for Lieutenant Gordon.

Bruce lifted Anna into his arms and waited for the Lieutenant, who was rather speechless over the devastation brought by the Batman.

He nodded at the disguised figure. "Good work."

"Now it's your turn." Batman murmured to him. None of the thugs had been greatly injured, and he hoped that the Lieutenant would give them all what they deserved.

"Shall I call an ambulance?" Gordon asked pointing at Anna.

"No," Batman replied simply and Gordon nodded. Someone called his name behind him and while his back was turned, Batman disappeared into the night with the girl in his arms.

* * *

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	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** It's the END - thank you Pepper, for being my most helpful beta :D and thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing!

* * *

Chapter 10:

When Anna opened her eyes the next time everything around her was silent, It had been a long time since she had felt that calm. Her body was pain-free and relaxed and there was no freezing cold anymore. Implicit sunlight dazzled her, but the bright rays felt warm and pleasant on her face. She turned her head to find out where she was, now that the fogginess was gone. Maybe her mind played tricks on her and nothing was as it seemed, but when she recognized the bed and the room she laid in her heart jumped.

It was the same room she had lived in almost two weeks, before she fled in a mad rush from Wayne Manor. Everything was as it has been when she had left, as Anna looked down at herself, she noticed that she even wore the same sort of outfit, the white t-shirt and the old sweats Bruce gave her.

Anna sat up on constrained limbs, and swung her feet out of the bed and remained on the edge of the bed for a second until the light dizziness disappeared and she was able to stand up. She stretched her arms and legs and quietly went out of the room. Carefully she walked down the corridor and enjoyed the feeling of the expensive looking, fluffy carpet under her bare feet. The calmness in her mind was unusual and Anna was sure, that there was something in her veins that contributed to her good mood.

She stepped down the stairs and turned her head in search for someone, as she heard a rattle in the kitchen. Anna went toward the room and as she pushed through the door, the gray-haired butler with the gentle smile turned to her and opened his arms, as if to welcome her.

"Miss Reyes." he bowed slightly and Anna realized that he had used her real name. "I hope you feel better. Would you like some coffee? If I remember right you liked it black and strong."

He didn't even wait for her to answer, but rather handed her a cup and took a closer look at her with a touch of worry in his eyes.

Anna smiled at his kindness. "Thank you, Alfred." she said with a slightly hoarse voice. She coughed and looked around. When she tried to remember how she came to be here, there was only darkness and a strange feeling of unease.

She had to talk to Bruce, but she didn't know where he was.

"Where is Bruce?" Anna questioned and Alfred nodded his head toward the hallway.

"In his study. He will be glad to see that you're awake and looking much better than last time." Alfred still smiled at her and Anna returned it, though she didn't know exactly what he meant with 'last time'.

The last thing she remembered clearly was Bruce, sitting next to her in his car after getting her out of prison, talking about her brother. After that there were only indistinct recollections of foreign faces and a terrifying situation, she could not get hold of yet.

She took a sip from her coffee and walked down the hall. Anna reached the study and recognized, that it was the room with the piano in it, where she had discovered the hidden door at her first week in Wayne manor.

A tired looking Bruce sat at his desk, his chin supported by his hand, lost in a file that laid on his crossed legs. Anna watched him for a while and noticed a bandaged wrist and stitches on his forehead. A fleeting memory of a car crash came to her mind and her stomach turned slightly. There was a loud screech, the scratching of metal and the sound of shattering glass in her ears.

Quickly she shoved away the thought and knocked at the door frame. Bruce looked up in surprise and his face brightened up as he realized that it was Anna.

"You're up." he pointed out and stood up from his chair approaching her with a slow, graceful walk and his common charming smile.

"I've never seen you working here." Anna said, trying to hide her sudden nervousness over his presence.

There had been so many things happening between them, which had confused her. He had taken her in, when she had hit rock bottom and she hadn't been able to handle his kindness and the unknown feelings she had developed for him. She had left him alone, after raising his hopes, but Bruce had forgiven her.

But now, she wasn't sure what had happened the last few hours or days, which could have had an effect on their complicated relationship.

Bruce stroked a strand of dark hair behind her ear and watched her for a moment. "I took a couple of days off of work, and I'm trying not to get behind on paperwork. How are you?" he asked and Anna shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I feel... good, but—" she didn't know what to say, so she said what came to her mind first. "What happened, Bruce?"

She touched the wound on his forehead. "And where did you get that?"

His smile became uneasy and he slid one hand into his pocket as if to hide something from her. "You can't remember anything, not even the car crash?" he asked and Anna shook her head.

"I remember that we were in your car and after that there is nothing but noises and chaotic images that I don't understand."

Bruce took her cup of coffee, placed it on a cabinet and laid a hand on her back. He led her through the room and leaned at his desk.

"You got involved with stuff that you shouldn't have gotten involved in. We were t-boned by a van and when I woke up in the hospital, they told me someone abducted you. Then, Batman found you and brought you here."

Anna stopped as he mentioned Batman and frowned.

"He saved your life Anna." Bruce affirmed as he noticed the change in her face and she took a deep breath. She still remembered that it was Batman, who had let her walk right into a trap and she wasn't sure if she could see it the way Bruce did.

"He risked his own life to save yours. Would you believe me if I told you that he never meant to harm you?" He asked as if he had read her mind and took her hands into his.

Anna thought about his words but was still not sure what to believe in. Bruce looked deep into her eyes and she nodded, at first just to satisfy him. His warm brown eyes brightened immediately and his smile returned.

"He saved my life. Twice." Anna admitted and thought about the moment the dark knight found her in that dark alley, bloody, alone and broken.

"But you must understand that I'm not ready yet to trust anyone but you, and maybe Alfred." she smiled to show that she was making a effort.

It seemed like an eternity since that day Anna had first met the Bat and everything in her life had changedsince. She was on track of ridding herself of her addiction and she had the love of a charming, good looking and gentle man. But she had been in that situation once already and had ruined everything with her inner disunity.

Anna lowered her head and uttered the thought that suddenly bothered her.

"What now Bruce?" She had let him down once and was afraid that this would happen again.

Bruce pulled her closer to him and clasped her waist.

"Now you will recover. If you agree to that, we will start out fresh. I'd like to ask you to be honest with me and..." he paused and seemed to think about his next words. "And not to run away without a word this time."

She leaned closer to him, feeling his warmth and the safety his great hands around her waist gave her. Anna had already been closer to him, but this time the feeling was different. There was more than just physical attraction and a desperate desire to receive affection.

"I really would like to do that, Bruce." She moved her face close to his and placed a soft kiss on his lips to emphasize her promise.

"So you will stay?" Bruce asked and kissed her in return. They shared soft butterfly kisses and Anna relaxed under his touch.

"I promise you." she replied and stroked his muscular forearms arms with her fingertips.

"And you will tell me everything that bothers you?" his hands ran up her back and caressed her neck.

Anna nodded and pressed another kiss on his lips, more passionate this time.

"I think it would be fair..." He suddenly started, interrupting the kiss, but did not finish speaking and got up from the desk, still holding her at her waist.

Anna had no idea what he was up to. Bruce ran a hand trough his hair and started anew. "Now that we talked about honesty—truth be told, there is something I must tell you." He said slowly and hesitating. "No. I will show you." He corrected himself and Anna was shortly confused by his uncommon lack of words.

"Will you promise me something?" He asked and Anna chuckled. "I already promised you everything, Bruce. What else can I promise you?"

"This is important, for me and for you. I will show you something, which will—confuse you, or quite possibly anger you. Will you promise me to keep secret, whatever it is?" He asked firmly and Anna nodded. No matter what it was, it seemed to be very important to him and she would take that seriously.

"Come out with it, I promise not to tell anyone." Anna assured, impatiently watching his dark eyes, his look piercing but still gentle.

Bruce took a short but deep breath. "Do you remember the door you found in here, while wandering through my house that first day?" He smiled a disarming smile, covering up the awkward situation she had slid into by accident.

Anna nodded, still reluctant and not knowing what he intended. He raised a hand to indicate her not to move, took a step to the side and opened the cover of the piano.

"I'm going to show you what it leads to." He stroke some keys and played a tuneless melody. After that the bookshelf, that took up the whole wall behind her, moved and uncovered a great dark square. At second glance it was the door with a metal cage in it. Anna looked at Bruce questioningly and not knowing what to do next and he stepped over to her, took her hand and lead her to the door.

"No need to worry. It isn't a long way down." He threw an encouraging glance her way.

"Down? Where are we going?" Anna questioned intertwining her fingers with his.

"There is a cave under the Manor." Bruce explained and entered the metal cage, pulling Anna close to him.

"A cave? Are there bats down there?" Anna asked shivering and Bruce chuckled. "Maybe.".

The elevator set in motion and the covert door closed to transform into the bookshelf again, leaving no further indication for the secrets that were hidden behind it.

The End


End file.
